Cyrus Dugger

Reclaiming the Freedom of Information Act

Yesterday the Senate Judiciary Committee approved the Open Government Act. This bill is an attempt to push back against recent federal stonewalling of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests.

Senate Judiciary Committee approves bill to speed FOIA compliance Kate Heneroty at 8:34 AM ET [JURIST] The US Senate Judiciary Committee [official website] approved the OPEN Government Act [S 394 summary] Thursday, a bill that would punish federal agencies that fail to respond to requests under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) [DOJ materials] in a timely manner. The bill would give federal agencies 20 days to determine whether to comply with the FOIA request for records and would require agencies to provide tracking numbers for checking on the status of the request.

The bill was introduced by Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) [official website] and a group of other senators in response to complaints that FOIA requests take months or years to be answered or rejected and large portions of the results are commonly blacked out. Earlier this year, a federal judge ruled that the US Air Force has engaged in a pattern or practice of violating FOIA requirements and the Defense Department was separately ordered to expedite processing of FOIA requests [JURIST reports].

The ability to access the courts is dependent on the availability of proof to make your case. When government officials or agencies break or bend the law, oftentimes the only way to find out is through a FOIA.

Indeed, it was precisely through a FOIA request that the EPA’s knowledge of the danger at Ground Zero from its tests (which it misrepresented to the public) came to light.

The limitation of FOIA during the current administration has made it increasingly hard to hold our government officials accountable.

Examples of Government FOIA Stonewalling

Saying Government Stonewalling Must End, ACLU and NYCLU Seek Immediate Release of U.S. Torture Documents

Leahy Testifies Before House Panel On Need To Strengthen Open Government Laws

CCR Charges in Lawsuit that Government Illegally Withheld Information On Torture of Detainees in U.S. Custody

Sunshine is the best disinfectant for governmental misconduct.

For a comprehensive description of how FOIA works, click here.

Support this bill!

If you or your organization is interested in learning more about or working on these types of civil justice issues, please feel free to contact me at cdugger@drummajorinstitute.org.

Cyrus Dugger
Senior Fellow in Civil Justice
Drum Major Institute for Public Policy

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Posted at 11:50 AM, Sep 22, 2006 in
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